Always Selling: Sales and Marketing Business Practices Everyone in the Library Can Use

Transcription

1 Always Selling: Sales and Marketing Business Practices Everyone in the Library Can Use PCI Webinars Carrie Rogers-Whitehead

2 What this webinar will cover 2 Why librarians should understand marketing Terms to know Popular sales strategies Steps to close a sale Digital marketing 101 Networking and building relationships Resources Discussion and Q&A

3 HELLO! 3 I m a former librarian, current library consultant, that transitioned from the public to private sector. I am an adjunct business instructor with Salt Lake Community College and teach on communications, marketing and more.

4 4 My experiences Don t become complacent about what libraries provide. Just because it s there doesn t mean they will come. There should be a dedicated budget for networking. Most of the sales comes one-on-one over a long period of time. It s about relationships. Librarians too much try to be everything to everyone. This isn t the most effective or efficient strategy. Not everyone has the personality or strengths for this type of work.

5 5 Libraries are salespeopl e. What are

6 6 1. Terms to know

7 What is a target market? 7» Determining the target market is one of the first things to do before developing a marketing or sales strategy.» It s helpful to create a story about your market. Provide names and specifics.» The target market is the specific audience that would be interested in your product.» Target markets should be very specific and be narrowed to psychosocial, age, religion, interests, geography and more

8 Create a story about your target market 8 The library is adding additional story times to their program schedule. Make up a story of someone in the target market.

9 What is a lead? 9» A lead is a person who s shown an interest in your product. This could mean they use your databases, or they visited an outreach booth, or came to a library program etc.» A lead turns into a prospect Lead Qualification What issues are you facing that the library can help you with? What keeps you from visiting the library? How could visiting the library help you?

10 What is conversion? 10» Conversion refers to taking a lead and turning it into a prospect.» A conversion form, or lead capture form are found on a landing page and collect information from visitors» Does your library have a conversion form? A lead capture form can help save staff time.

11 Benefits vs. Features 11 Focus on the FEATURES not the benefits when trying to convince people.» Benefits are the value that a consumer of your product experiences.» i.e. The library provides a quiet space where I can study.» Features are the functions of the product that solve a consumer's particular pain/needs» i.e. The library provides the materials I need to help pass my certification exam.

12 A CRM can be as simple as a spreadsheet. Do you have something like that? Churn Rate Measures what customers you retain. i.e. 500 people came to your library programs Oct 17, but only 450 in Oct 18 Measurement Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software that tracks your customers/partners /patrons. It can also schedule appointments, follow-ups. Forecasting Looking ahead to meet your goals 12 i.e. December was a busy month for programs last year. Do I have enough programs and staff for this year?

13 Be sure to at least list: Name Where you met Second contact date and what happened Third contact date Phone number Name of organization How are you tracking your contacts? 13

14 14 2. Popular Sales Strategies

15 Sell a Solution to a Problem 15» What are the problems in your community?» What specifically can the library do to solve that problem?» The library provides digital access to those in the community that do not have it.

16 Tell a Story 16» What are the stories of people using the library? What are the stories of staff?» How do you communicate those stories to the public?» Juan was new to this country and trying to gain citizenship. The library provided the resources for him to do that.

17 Give Something for Free 17» What can the library provide for free to partners/prospects?» Give before you ask.» It sounds like your organization is doing some great things. I d like to promote your upcoming event on our library social media accounts.

18 Perfect your Pitch 18» What can the library do for you?» Be able to answer that question in 2 minutes or less.» The library has over a dozen free databases that can be used to help you grow your small business

19 Demonstrate your Product 19» An objection may be that the customer doesn t know how to use your product.» Show them step by step how to utilize the resources.» Let me help you sign up for a library account. This is what you would do first.

20 20 3. Closing the Sale

21 Sales Funnel 21

22 Biggest Reasons for Customer Objections 22» Time- They don t get what you offer and are too busy to think about it» Budget» Trust- They don t know you» They aren t the decisionmaker

23 Overcoming Objections 23» Clarify your understanding: So if I understand correctly» Gather more information: Tell me more about» Be quiet, let them speak» Confirm you ve satisfied the objection: Are you happy with that?...

24 Follow up tips 24» Put it in a Google calendar» Specifically state in the , I will you in two weeks» Have a package of dollar store thank you notes by your desk» Put business cards in a stack by your computer to go through

25 25 4. Digital Marketing 101

26 26 Google only loves you if everyone loves you first. Wendy Piersall

27 SEO- Search Engine Algorithm 27» How do people find your library programs?» Are you creating content or just linking to content?» Is the library the first thing people think of when looking for information?

28 Ways to Boost your SEO 28 Create Content Your blog is only 50% for readers, the rest is for Google. This can also be video, pictures etc. Use Alt-Tags Alt-tags are alternative text descriptions. They describe visual and audio content. Improve your page s loading speed People are impatient and they will not wait. This can include clearing out cache, changing sizes of images etc.

29 How is your library handling social media? 29 Who handles your social media? Who creates content for social media? Or are you just recycling content? How often do you post?

30 Social Media Strategy 30» Focus on 2-3 social media services and do them well rather than focus on too many. Consider your target market when picking a service.» Each day have a focus. i.e. Mondays are for new books. Tuesdays are for programs. Wednesdays are for databases etc.» Schedule posts. Instagram now allows scheduling posts. Facebook has a native scheduler. Consider TailWind and Hootsuite

31 The Results of hiring someone to evaluate my marketing strategy» Personal stories go best» Thursdays are one of the best days to post» Stay away from posting on Saturdays» Add more video content. Start with just face to face videos, not animations» Schedule all your posts at once Instagram is more about personal branding, not lead generation. 31

32 32 5. Networking and Building Relationships

33 Knowledge Management 33» What policies/strategies does your library have in place to pass on information?» What happens to those relationships when someone changes roles or leaves?

34 Suggestions of places to network 34» Chamber meetings» Conferences and conventions» Family friendly activities: Mom s groups, Single Dads groups» Rotary Clubs» School Board meetings» Fundraisers» Meetup.com- Recreational activities» Co-working spaces- they host of lots of networking» Pitch Events- they re not just events for businesses (i.e. 1Million Cups)

35 Tips for networking 35 Listen Don t take over the conversation. Ask openended questions. Let them shine. When people talk about themselves it puts them in a better mood, and that better mood reflects on you. Research Know what you re walking into. What are the attendees like? Create a list of 3-5 questions you can ask anywhere? i.e. What have you been enjoying the most about the event? Make friends Go in with the mindset that you re there to make a friend, not sell a product. Don t pressure yourself to do too much or set the bar too high. Relax and make a friend. Tag Team Bring a friend that can introduce you to others. Then in conversation you can riff off each other. This gives you a chance to showcase what others do, and not talk about yourself.

36 REFERENCES 36» Best-Instagram-Scheduling-Tools-for-2018»

37 THANK YOU!! 37 Any questions? You can find me Presentation template by SlidesCarnival» Photographs by Unsplash» Diverse device hand photos by Facebook Design Resources